Perhaps time truly heals most wounds.
While documenting her life for Teen Mom cameras, Maci Bookout McKinney has been open about her distant relationship with ex Ryan Edwards and his extended family. The tension came to a head with an explosive disagreement during the reunion show in April 2021. In fact, Ryan and his parents stepped away from the franchise soon after the episode aired.
Now, Maci is providing a glimpse into where everyone stands today.
"We're definitely not at the place that we were when we left that reunion," she exclusively shared with E! News. "Ryan and I's relationship has been non-existent for years. We don't see each other, speak to each other. It's not a thing."
However, the same can't be said for Maci's relationship with Ryan's parents Larry and Jen Edwards.
"Sometimes you just have to remove yourself from the situation so that you can really look at it and think about it and figure out what your next steps are," Maci said. "I feel like that them not being on the show has helped create that space. We've gotten back to a genuinely cordial space. It's not forced or fake. It's very authentic. It's not super close, but that's OK. It's just a genuine cordial relationship."
According to Maci, her 13-year-old son Bentley (who she welcomed with Ryan) still has a "great relationship" with Jen and Larry. As for Bentley's goal to do therapy with his dad, Maci said it's still a work in progress.
"It still hasn't happened, but the ball is still in Ryan's court," Maci shared. "It always will be. It's one of those things where Bentley's gonna live his life no matter what. He's not waiting on Ryan. He's hopeful, but he's not waiting to live his life when Ryan decides to come in. Bentley is gonna do what Bentley does and be great. And Ryan can get on board if he wants to, whenever he wants to."
E! News has reached out to Ryan and his parents for comment and hasn't heard back.
Currently in eighth grade, Bentley remains busier than ever as he tackles golf, wrestling and baseball. He recently received his own Instagram account with strict parameters from his mom. He also continues to communicate with his family about what he feels comfortable sharing on MTV.
"If there's something that's brought up, him and I will have conversation," Maci said. "Then we'll have a conversation with production or our producer and figure out if it's something he wants to do or something he doesn't want to do. And we just follow his lead on that."
As Bentley continues to grow up on the small screen, his mom can't help but celebrate all of his accomplishments while also praising his attitude about the life around him.
"He's a special human," the Things That Matter designer said. "He's the type of person that's just born special. He's just a special person. You can't teach that. You can't raise someone to be that way. Everything about him is just nice and good and sweet."
Teen Mom: The Next Chapter airs Tuesday nights at 8 p.m. on MTV.